1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to a stylus pen used in an electronic device having a touchscreen.
2. Description of the Related Art
Today's remarkable development in various electronic communication technologies portable terminals lead to lighter and smaller portable terminals, which includes a mobile phone such as a smart phone, a mobile pad, a media player, a tablet computer, a handheld computer, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), etc.
Further, a number of peripheral devices related to the electronic device has increased. Typical peripheral devices may be roughly classified into an auxiliary memory card, an ear microphone mounted to the electronic device and installed to allow communication with a counterpart, a Bluetooth headset for performing short distance wireless communication via a Bluetooth module installed in the electronic device, a stylus pen for easily manipulating a touchscreen unit allowing input and output simultaneously, etc.
A smart phone is implemented with a touch screen for performing input and output simultaneously. A touch panel used for the touchscreen unit is classified into various touch panels such as a resistive touch panel, a capacitive touch panel, an ultrasonic touch panel, a light (infrared) sensor type touch panel, an electromagnetic touch panel, a sound wave touch panel, etc.
To increase convenience and diversity of a touch input, some electronic devices are equipped with a stylus pen of a predetermined length whose end is sharp so that the stylus pen is attachable/detachable to/from the inside of the electronic device. For example, the electronic device having the resistive touchscreen enables a user to use the sharp end of the stylus pen a predetermined pressure to activate the touch screen. In case of the capacitive touch panel, it is preferable that a tip of the stylus pen contacting a touchscreen is formed of a conductive material. Also, in case of the electromagnetic touch panel, the electronic device may be configured such that a coil and a magnetic body are provided inside a stylus pen to generate a resonance frequency depending on electromagnetic induction, and a separate digitizer inside the electronic device reads a relevant position of the stylus pen. As the electronic devices are getting smaller, the stylus pen integrated in these devices is also getting smaller.
As described above, various sizes and types of stylus pens having a similar shape are used to be attachable/detachable to/from the electronic device. However, a stylus pen whose size (length and diameter) is smaller is not easy for a user to grip and use.